The Thrashers

A Novel

By: Julie Soto

Length: 10 hrs and 15 mins

Publisher's summary

Everyone is dying to join them.

Welcome to The Thrashers, the exclusive friend group of New Helvetia High. They are everything you want to be and everyone wants to be them.

Then there’s Jodi Dillion, the odd one out. The others—Julian, Lucy, Paige, and the infamous Zack Thrasher—are rich, sophisticated, and love being the center of attention; Jodi usually feels out of place. But Zack’s been her best friend since elementary school, so he says she’s in—and no one turns down the chance to be part of their group. Like Emily Mills. She wanted to be a Thrasher. More than anything.

But then Emily dies, and with her death, the whispers begin to circulate about The Thrashers—and what they do to people when they don’t want them around anymore. As a newfound journal of Emily’s comes to light, detectives begin to circle, and the media spirals out of control, putting Jodi in the impossible decision of turning on her friends, or protecting her own future.

Then a series of increasingly disturbing situations mount into a string of accidents that threaten the very lives of The Thrashers, and one thing becomes clear—Emily is not done with them yet.

A twisty thrill-ride of unforgettable drama and suspense that "encapsulates the vulnerability of adolescents playing adult games" (Ali Hazelwood) from USA Today bestselling author Julie Soto, The Thrashers will keep you up at night desperate to read just one more page.

"A tour-de-force YA debut from Julie Soto."—Alexa Donne

"For fans of Karen McManus and Kara Thomas, The Thrashers had me holding my breath, sweaty-palming my e-reader, and dying to flip each page to see what would happen next."—Susan Lee

"Expertly plotted and full of flawed, morally gray characters you still can't help rooting for, The Thrashers is one of the best books I've read this year."—Evelyn Skye

©2025 Julie Soto (P)2025 Macmillan Audio

Critic reviews

“An aching portrait of disparate friendship, high school hierarchy, and the ghosts that haunt us--figuratively and literally. This unsettling, pulse-pounding pageturner will leave you desperate for a sequel. A tour-de-force YA debut from Julie Soto and the perfect slow-burn, creeping suspense read for fans of Nova Ren Suma and Marisha Pessl.”—Alexa Donne, author of The Ivies, Pretty Dead Queens, and The Bitter End

“WHAT A RIDE! Julie Soto has proven she can write in any age category, any genre, and pull out an incredibly compulsive, bingeable story. For fans of Karen McManus and Kara Thomas, The Thrashers had me holding my breath, sweaty-palming my e-reader, and dying to flip each page to see what would happen next. I was questioning who to trust, including my own thoughts and memories (!), up till the very end. And I thoroughly enjoyed exploring how social status, money, privilege, and mental health impact who we believe in and what they can get away with in this gripping novel. One of the MOST FUN YA thrillers I’ve read in a long time!”–Susan Lee, author of Seoulmates and The Name Drop

"Expertly plotted and full of flawed, morally gray characters you still can't help rooting for, THE THRASHERS is one of the best books I've read this year—and that's not hyperbole. Think Veronica Mars with a hint of the unreal. Soto keeps you guessing and turning pages until the last gasp at the very end."—Evelyn Skye, New York Times Bestselling author of Damsel